20 Questions
by Tayg
Summary: One shot FemShep/Liara during original Mass Effect. M for some language. Scene that takes place between almost-kiss scene and love scene. Shepard tries to flirt with Liara.


20 Questions

_A/N - One shot FemShep/Liara during original Mass Effect. M for some language. _

_I always thought that it would have been difficult for Shepard to not at least try to flirt with Liara a little. This is a scene I thought about taking place between the almost-kiss and the love scene. _

_This is my first work, all suggestions are welcome_

They were so close, damn that Joker. He has the worst timing in the history of forever. Shepard originally thought he was listening in but soon realized he would have let it go for his own personal enjoyment and not interrupted the kiss that never happened.

Liara, my how did that asari get under her skin and in her thoughts, especially those of a sensuous nature. This was more than just physical attraction although there was certainly no shortage of that. Those eyes, those curvy hips, and everything else just drove the Commander insane. All those skin tight outfits were so distracting at times and she wanted to know what was underneath. She had never been with an asari before. Hell it had been forever since she was with anyone but there was no denying this attraction even if she had wanted to. But this was more. There was such innocence permeating Liara that equally drove the attraction. And Liara had called her fascinating. She had been called a lot of things, but never fascinating. That sealed the deal in Shepard's mind.

Liara was almost four times as old as she but inexperienced and extremely shy when it came to relationships. The last thing Shepard wanted to do was push her into something she was uncomfortable with so she was letting Liara set the pace, mostly. She would catch Liara staring at her from the corner of her eye across the mess hall or the lounge. Once she decided to meet her eyes, smile, and mouth the word "hi" to her. It completely backfired, Liara avoided her for two days until (luckily in some respects), she required a meld and things returned to how they had been. Shepard decided to back off and once again let Liara in the driver's seat. Relinquishing control was something she never did easily let alone willingly.

Then there was the kiss, the non-kiss. It was all she thought about all day as the Normandy carried them towards Ilos, still 3 days away. She found herself lying on her bed, imagining sucking on her supple bottom blue lip and licking those perfect teeth. Before she knew it, her mouth was moving in motion of mimicking the kiss and she was moaning uncontrollably. "I need a drink". The majority of the crew was undoubtedly in the lounge as they usually were on the way to a big mission, and she was in no mood to be distracted. She wanted to think about Liara. And the mess hall was near her office …

She downed a shot of Brandy and then popped a mint, you know just incase. She then grabbed some overly sweet wine and sat down facing away from Liara's office. Her mind was drifting and Shepard was unaware of how long she had been sitting there except for the fact that the bottle was half empty, when she heard a voice from behind her.

She grinned from ear to ear but never turned around for fear of chasing her away yet again. "Liara, join me for a drink. I don't like drinking alone."

"I don't want to intrude if you are waiting for someone else." Liara replied.

Shepard turned around with a confused look on her face. "Why would you think I am waiting for someone else?"

Liara pointed to the second glass on the table. Wow, she didn't even realize she pulled it out. The alcohol had already lowered her defenses slightly and she blurted out, "Actually I was hoping _you_ would wander by."

Liara smiled and sat down across from her. Shepard grabbed the bottle, filled the second glass for her. "It's a sweet wine, I know how you are partial to sweets. I think you will like it." She raised her glass to Liara's and said "Cheers".

They talked about nothing important for a while and Liara seemed to like the taste of the wine. "About earlier Liara…" Shepard saw a slight look of panic overtake the asari's face. _Not again._ "Thanks for the pep talk, and believing in me. Even Commander Shepard needs a kick in the ass once in a while." She hoped this was enough of a save, and her words spoke true as well. "Most people seem to be too intimidated by me to do that, so thanks."

Liara looked a little confused by her words. "I do not find you intimidating at all."

Shepard smiled, "…and that's once again why I thank you. It's nice to be able to let my guard down around someone for once. I act like Commander because they expect me to. With you I don't have to do that all the time. I can be the other part of myself," _the part that no one sees_. She stared at her for a few moments. "And it would be nice to get to know you better. Let's play a game. We ask each other questions. You can either choose to answer or choose to take a drink. It's the perfect way to learn about each other. And you may find out some stuff that you didn't locate in your search earlier." Shepard was quick to accentuate her smile so Liara knew she was teasing her again.

Liara pondered the proposition and decided the worse that could happen would be to drink some more really good wine. "Ok me first. How did you get that scar on your jaw line?"

Shepard unconsciously took her index finger to her scar and ran it along the three inch length. She didn't mind it now but the memory of being called "scarface" by some guy she liked came fluttering back and that memory seemed to still haunt her at times. "I was 13, got into a fight, got cut by a broken bottle." She was studying Liara's face but could not read it. "Do you have ears? I mean I know you can hear but how?"

Liara laughed. She touched the side of her face where the folds of her skin were vertical. "This is where we hear although there is no hole like a human, nor any of the outer parts such as the lobe." She took a drink anyway. When she saw Shepard smirking at her, she said "I like the taste. So you never talk about your family …." Liara left her words hanging in the air because she was not sure how to phrase it without offending her. She had found no information on any family during her search.

Shepard looked at her and sat quiet for a moment. She noticed the bottle was almost empty and filled the remainder of the wine into the glasses before answering. "My family is here, on the Normandy" and then she drank. "A story for another time" and then she smiled. "Do you find my scar detracting?" she blurted out without even realizing what she said until the words were long spoken.

The question caught Liara offguard. She began to worry once again if she had offended Shepard. "Not at all, I find it … fascinating. I do say that word a lot do I not? It gives you character. " What she really wanted to say was it was distracting because she had spent a lot of time daydreaming about licking it as she found it extremely sexy. So maybe Shepard was not intimidating but being attracted to her surely was. She saw Shepard relax again and decided to pick a more generic question. "Why does everyone call you by your last name?"

"It's a military thing and it just stuck I guess." She honestly didn't remember the last time anyone called her anything but Commander or Shepard. "Tell me about your first kiss." She leaned over the table and just grinned at the asari who was stunned silent for a few moments.

Then she blushed again and Shepard felt butterflies in her stomach. "I am not quite sure how the rules apply in this instance. I can not tell you about it because it has not happened. So I guess I drink" and with that she downed the remainder of the liquid in her glass. "You wouldn't happen to have more, would you?"

Shepard was determined not to make Liara uncomfortable but the desire to kiss her just grew more intense and she was having difficulty controlling that urge. "I have some in my cabin, I can go get it …" and just as she was debating inviting Liara up, they heard noises from the cockpit.

"Would I be too forward if I asked if we could go up there and continue this game? I do not relish the thought of Joker hearing about my kissing habits."

Shepard laughed, "Come on. I am always more relaxed when I do not have to worry too much about being pulled into commando err I mean Commander mode." Shepard hoped Liara was not familiar with the human phrase and didn't realize her Freudian slip.

They took the elevator to her cabin and Shepard was glad she did not leave a mess lying around. "Relax and get comfortable. Take off your boots if you want. I am going to change quickly if you don't mind." She ran into the bathroom without waiting for a response and threw on a pair of formfitting, low-waist sweats and a snug tee. Liara looked relieved when she came out, as if she was expecting a lace nightie or something similar. "Ahhhh now I feel relaxed. So whose turn is it?"

They were sitting across from each other on the sectional and Liara began removing her boots. She was trying not to stare at Shepard's slender muscular body that was always hidden by armor or baggy crew gear. For someone in the most basic casual human clothes, she wore it well. "It's mine. So what** is** your first name?"

"It's Aiya. I was named after my father's grandmother who was of Japanese decent and I was told it means 'beautiful silk'. You knew that already though didn't you?"

Liara's rouse had been broken. "I confess I did learn that in my search but I wanted to hear it from you." Liara thought she was aptly named. She was so beautiful. She wore little makeup if any, a simple short hairstyle she occasionally pushed behind her ears, and had a natural aura that glowed of mystery and warmth. She had silky dark red hair and blazing violet eyes. "Can I call you Aiya then? When we are in private I mean of course. I would not want to do it if you do not wish."

"I would like that actually. I don't remember the last time anyone called me by my name. It sounds soothing coming from your lips though." Shepard had the sudden urge to see Liara blush again. "I know you said asari don't think of gender in the way that humans do, but is there something that you are physically attracted to? Like blonde hair or big muscles or …." As soon as the statement left her mouth, she knew it sounded awkward and like she was fishing.

Liara did not blush much to Aiya's surprise and disappointment. "I am attracted to auras and inner beings. What makes up a person is what is important to me. And eyes … violet eyes." and then the blushing began, on both sides. "What about you, Commander?" She let the last word hang in the air flirtatiously.

"Hmmm I am like you, I am attracted to the soul of a being." _And blue skin and blue eyes and an amazing set of tits_. She had never been with a woman before, but she thought about it, a lot lately. "Then it would be freckles" _just like yours_. She decided to ask the one question that was the real inspiration for this game to begin with. With a slow deep breath she said, "Did I upset you the other day when I said hi to you across the room?"

Liara looked at her and then grabbed the bottle, opened it, and filled her glass. She drank half of it and then noticed the look of panic on Aiya's face. "I am not drinking because I do not wish to answer. I am drinking because I want to answer. No, you did not. I just get overwhelmed sometimes by my own feelings and I have little experience in these matters as you know. You are so confident and experienced and maybe in this respect I do feel intimidated because of that and how enormous the act of bonding is to an asari, to this asari anyway. I fear looking stupid in front of you." She then finished her glass and quickly asked her next question to change the subject. "Tell me something about you that no one else on the ship knows."

Shepard was still thinking about what Liara had just said to her. She was always open and honest but this time she did not reel herself in when getting emotional. She thought for a moment, took a sip, and said "I have never been with someone who truly cared about me in return. Sex was just sex on their part for whatever reason. Deep down I knew it but it did not matter. Then I just stopped the charade because searching for false love and approval no longer had a place in my life. It has to matter now." She could not believe she was able to vocalize that to anyone else. But it seemed right in response to Liara's previous reveal. She decided to lighten the mood a bit, "What kind of a kid were you in school?"

They continued the fun banter back and forth for a little while until the bottle was empty. Liara mentioned she should be getting back Shepard agreed. She was putting away the glasses and didn't notice the reports on the edge of the table. She accidentally bumped them off, right next to Liara's feet and as she bent over to pick them up, she could not resist running her fingertip on the inside of the asari's leg from her ankle to her knee. One day she hoped to climb up those legs with her tongue. She got up and winked at her before moving the glasses to the counter.

Liara was near the door when she turned around, boots in hand, and smiling. "Thank you for a wonderful night Aiya. It was nice getting to know you better." Shepard leaned against the wall with her thumbs hooked in the band of her sweats and smiled. "I had fun too Liara. We need to do this again."

Liara began to walk out the door but quickly dropped her boots, ran over to Aiya and pinned her arms against the wall and began kissing her hungrily. Aiya felt the waves of biotics on her lips and it was pure magic, literally. After what seemed like an eternity, Liara pulled back and said "I would like to change one of my answers. My first kiss was amazing and everything I could have dreamed of."

"You're worth waiting for Liara. You think you can let my arms go though darling?"

"Oh I am so sorry. I just got caught…"

And she was interrupted by a second kiss this time slower and more gentle, with Shepard taking the lead. She held Liara'a face in one hand while the other caressed the small of her back. They were nose to nose looking into each others eyes. "Aiya, can I ask one favor of you? And do something?"

"Anything."

Liara stuck her tongue out and licked her scar ever so lightly. "You do not know how long I have been wanting to do that." She kissed her one more time on the nose and said goodnight.

Aiya flopped on the bed and smiled, "She likes my scar."


End file.
